United Air Lines Flight 823

1964 aviation accident

36°1′36.51″N 83°3′41.19″W / 36.0268083°N 83.0614417°W / 36.0268083; -83.0614417AircraftAircraft typeVickers Viscount 745DOperatorUnited Airlines RegistrationN7405^[1]Flight originPhiladelphia International AirportStopoverWashington-National AirportLast stopoverKnoxville-McGhee Tyson AirportDestinationHuntsville International AirportOccupants39Passengers35Crew4Fatalities39Survivors0

United Airlines Flight 823 was a scheduled flight from Philadelphia International Airport, Pennsylvania, to Huntsville International Airport, Alabama, with 39 on board. On July 9, 1964, around 18:15 EST, the aircraft, a Vickers Viscount 745D, registration N7405,^[2] crashed 2.25 mi (3.62 km) northeast of Parrottsville, Tennessee, after experiencing an uncontrollable fire on board, killing all 39 onboard.^[1]^: 3 The fire of unknown origin occurred in the passenger cabin.^[1]^: 14–15 One passenger abandoned the aircraft through the No.4 escape window prior to impact, but did not survive the free-fall. Among the victims was Durant da Ponte, professor of American literature and assistant dean of the University of Tennessee graduate school.^[3]

The Aircraft Accident Report published by the Civil Aeronautics Board in June 1966—almost two years after the crash—stated, "The Board is unable to identify the source of fuel, the ignition point of the fire, or the cause of the final maneuver."^[1]^: 15 The investigation found the probable cause was "an uncontrollable in-flight fire, of undetermined origin, in the fuselage, which resulted in a loss of control of the aircraft."^[1]^: 15

About 33,000 lb of the 40,000-lb (empty weight) airliner were recovered, with much of the missing weight attributable to cabin furnishings that were destroyed by fire. The wreckage was transported to the Naval Laboratory in Washington, DC, where the Vickers was reconstructed by the Civil Aeronautics Board.^[4]

The accident triggered an investigation of the Lockheed L-109C flight data recorder, which resulted in modifications of that device and revision of the standards for all recorders. Also addressed were potential problems with the Pyrene Duo Head Model DCD-10 fire-extinguisher system for the underfloor baggage and heater compartments. An Airworthiness Directive was issued. Revisions were made to the Pilot's Manual, Viscount Maintenance and Instruction, and Accessories Manuals.^[1]^{: (Attachments 1-2)}

The accident happened next to a farm owned by the family of Miss Mae Trentham, whose family helped the crash's rescue workers with water and food. The airplane had grazed the Trentham property before it crashed; the property became the unofficial headquarters of both rescuers and investigators.^[5]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Aircraft Accident Report, United Air Lines, Inc., Vickers Viscount 745D, N7405, Near Parrottsville, Tennessee, July 9, 1964" (PDF). Civil Aeronautics Board. June 9, 1966. SA-380. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
^ "FAA Registry (N7405)". Federal Aviation Administration.
^ "Smokies air crash". The Nashville Tennessean. July 10, 1964. p. 12. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021.
^ United Press International, “They’re Rebuilding Airliner Bit by Bit, Piece by Piece,” The San Bernardino Daily Sun, Thursday 17 September 1964, Volume LXXI, Number 15, page A-13.
^ "the_parrottsville_crash_site [United Flight 823]". unitedflight823.com.

External links

United 823
Civil Aeronautics Board Accident Report United Airlines, Inc., Vickers Viscount 745D, N7405 rosap.ntlbts.gov Investigations of Aircraft Accidents 1934-1965
Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
"39 Victims Of Airplane Crash Remembered 50 Years Later" The Greeneville Sun, July 9, 2014, Archived from the original on May 26, 2021
"Viscount c/n 103 Operational History". vickersviscount.net. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021.

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States and U.S. territories in the 1960s
1960	National Airlines Flight 2511 Capital Airlines Flight 20 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 710 Chicago Helicopter Airways Flight 698 World Airways Flight 830 Eastern Air Lines Flight 375 Cal Poly football team New York mid-air collision
1961	Goldsboro B-52 American Airlines Flight 1502 Yuba City B-52 United Air Lines Flight 859 Alaska Airlines Flight 779 TWA Flight 529 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 706 Imperial Airlines Flight 201/8 Cincinnati Zantop DC-4
1962	American Airlines Flight 1 Continental Airlines Flight 11 Canadian Pacific Air Lines Flight 301 United Air Lines Flight 297 Eastern Air Lines Flight 512
1963	Elephant Mountain B-52 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 705 Camden PA-24 Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 293 Mohawk Airlines Flight 112 Pan Am Flight 214
1964	Savage Mountain B-52 Eastern Air Lines Flight 304 Paradise Airlines Flight 901A Pacific Air Lines Flight 773 United Air Lines Flight 823 Bonanza Air Lines Flight 114 Flying Tiger Line Flight 282
1965	USAF KC-135 Wichita Eastern Air Lines Flight 663 Pan Am Flight 843 Continental Airlines Flight 12 Allegheny Airlines Flight 604 United Air Lines Flight 389 American Airlines Flight 383 United Air Lines Flight 227 Carmel mid-air (Eastern 853, TWA 42)
1966	NASA T-38 American Flyers Airline Flight 280/D Braniff International Airways Flight 250 West Coast Airlines Flight 956
1967	Lake Central Airlines Flight 527 TWA Flight 553 West Coast Airlines Flight 720 Delta Air Lines Flight 9877 Mohawk Airlines Flight 40 Piedmont Airlines Flight 22 Lake Erie skydiving disaster TWA Flight 159 X-15 Flight 3-65-97 TWA Flight 128
1968	Ozark Air Lines Flight 965 Braniff International Airways Flight 352 Los Angeles Airways Flight 841 Los Angeles Airways Flight 417 Northeast Airlines Flight 946 Japan Air Lines Flight 2 Pan Am Flight 281 Wien Consolidated Airlines Flight 55 Allegheny Airlines Flight 736 Pan Am Flight 799 North Central Airlines Flight 458 Ozark Air Lines Flight 982
1969	Allegheny Airlines Flight 737 Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 933 United Air Lines Flight 266 Hawthorne Nevada Airlines Flight 708 Prinair Flight 277 Delta Air Lines Flight 821 TWA Flight 5787 Newton Cessna 172 crash Allegheny Airlines Flight 853 Mohawk Airlines Flight 411
This list is incomplete.

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Continental Airlines accidents and incidents	Flight 11 (1962) Flight 12 (1965) Flight 603 (1978) Flight 1713 (1987) Flight 55 (2000) Flight 1883 (2006) Flight 1404 (2008)
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